Fire in Rethymno: Difficult night – Large fire front – Settlements evacuated

It was a difficult night in Rethymno, as the fire that broke out yesterday morning between Orne and Kryas Vrysis, in the Agios Vasileios area is still raging.

According to the Fire Department, the front of the fire is large and the firefighting work is made difficult by the strong winds blowing in the area.

With the first light of the day, the aerial means started dropping water, giving hope to contain the fire.

“The fire was unsettled all night due to the strong winds, mainly towards Krya Vrysi. We managed to block a section towards Agia Galini, where the village was evacuated,” the mayor of Agios Vassiliou, Ioannis Tatarakis, told SKAI 100.3.

At the same time, the villages of Orne, Krya Vrysi, Saktouria, Agios Georgios, Agios Pavlos and Melampes have been evacuated.

According to the mayor, the residents are safe, while no houses were burned even though the fire entered the village of Melampes.

At this time, 2 helicopters, 110 firefighters with 5 groups of pedestrian units and 33 vehicles are operating.

Alarm for 5 regions

A very high risk of fire (risk category 4) is predicted today, Saturday, July 16, for five regions of the country according to the Fire Risk Prediction Map issued by the general secretariat of Civil Protection of the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection.

Specifically, a very high risk of fire is predicted tomorrow for the following areas:

• Region of Attica
• Region of Central Greece (PE Boeotia, PE Evia)
• Peloponnese Region (Corinthia Region, Argolis Region)
• Region of Crete
• North Aegean Region (Chios Region, Samos Region, Ikaria Region)

At the same time, the general secretariat of Civil Protection addresses recommendations to citizens to be especially careful and to avoid actions in the open air that can cause a fire by negligence, such as burning dry grass and branches or cleaning residues, using machines that cause sparks such as circular saws, welding devices, the use of outdoor grills, smoking bees, throwing lit cigarettes, etc. Also, the General Directorate of Fire Protection reminds that during the fire protection season burning of fields is prohibited and calls on citizens in the event of a fire to notify the Fire Service immediately by dialing 199.

In addition, the 2nd stage of operational readiness of the P.S. remains in place. and aerial surveillance patrols will continue, as well as patrols by Fire, Police and Military forces.

Furthermore, the staff of the Fire Departments of the above Regional Units remain on partial alert, and the staff of the P.Y. are on general alert. of Samos, in order to deal with the increased service requirements, which may arise due to a very high risk of fire (risk category 4).

At the same time, for the above areas, the Plan of Civil Protection actions to deal with risks due to forest fires remains in place, according to which, among other things, the implementation of the measure of the preventive ban on vehicle traffic and the stay of excursionists in national forests is foreseen, forests and “vulnerable” areas.

At the same time, the general secretariat of Civil Protection, in direct cooperation with the Fire Department, have informed all the competent government agencies involved, as well as the regions and municipalities of the country, so that they are on increased civil protection readiness in order to immediately deal with any fire incidents.

In addition, the Fire Department appeals to citizens:

1. Be especially careful and avoid any activity that could cause a fire.

2. To monitor forest fire prevention information available on the website and official accounts of the Fire Service, Facebook and Twitter.

3. In the event that they notice a fire, they should immediately notify the Fire Service by dialing 199.

Finally, the Fire Brigade calls on all citizens to be particularly careful and in the event of a fire, for their own safety, to faithfully follow the instructions of the competent authorities.

For more information and self-protection instructions from the dangers of forest fires, citizens can visit the website of the General Secretariat of Civil Protection at www.civilprotection.gr.

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